NRS 2020 - Pharmacology
OAKLAND UNIVERSITY NRS 2020 PHARMACOLOGY
PRACTICE QUESTIONS 2026/2027 COMPLIED FROM
REAL EXAMS (200 QUESTIONS)
A patient receives a drug that has a narrow therapeutic range. The nurse administering
this medication will expect to do what?
a. Administer this medication intravenously.
b. Administer the drug at intervals longer than the drug half-life.
c. Monitor plasma drug levels.
d. Teach the patient that maximum drug effects will occur within a short period.
c
Patients can exhibit alterations in the rate and extent of drug absorption because of
various factors. All of the following factors might affect the rate and/or extent of drug
absorption EXCEPT:
a. The presence of food in gut
b. The formulation of the drug
c. Intestinal motility
d. A generic form of the drug
e. Gastric emptying time
d
Parenteral (Intravenous) administration:
a. Cannot be used with unconsciousness patients
b. Is too slow for emergency use
c. Usually produces a more rapid response than oral administration
d. Generally results in a less accurate dosage than oral administration
c
,NRS 2020 - Pharmacology
A patient requires a high dose of antihypertensive medication because the medication
has a significant first-pass effect. What does this mean?
a. The medication is extensively metabolized in the patient's liver.
b. The medication must pass through the patient's bloodstream several times to
generate a therapeutic effect.
c. The medication passes through the renal tubules and is excreted in large amounts.
d. The medication is ineffective following the first dose and increasingly effective with
each subsequent dose.
a
Dopamine is administered to a patient who has been experiencing hypotensive episodes.
Other than an increase in blood pressure, which indicator would the nurse use to
evaluate a successful response to the dopamine?
a. Improved gastric motility
b. Decrease in pulse.
c. Increase in urine output
d. Weight gain
c
A nurse is preparing to administer medications. Which patient would the nurse consider
to have the greatest predisposition to an adverse reaction?
a. A 75-year-old woman with cystitis
b. A 30-year-old man with kidney disease
c. A 9-year-old boy with an ear infection
d. A 50-year-old man with an upper respiratory tract infection
b
The nurse is administering morning medications. The nurse gives a patient multiple
medications, two of which compete for plasma albumin receptor sites. As a result of this
concurrent administration, the nurse can anticipate that what might occur? (Select all
that apply.)
a. The increase in bound drug will intensify effects.
b. Plasma levels of free drug will rise.
c. The increase in free drug will intensify effects.
d. Binding of one or both agents will be reduced.
,NRS 2020 - Pharmacology
e. Plasma levels of free drug will fall.
b, c, d
What are the properties of an ideal drug? (Select all that apply)
a. Chemical stability
b. Ease of administration
c. Predictability
d. Irreversible action
a, b, c
A patient is receiving Interferon Beta for treatment of multiple sclerosis. As the nurse you
will stress the importance of?
a. Low fat diet
b. Physical exercise to improve fatigue
c. Hand hygiene to avoid infection
d. Reporting feelings of severe depression of suicidal thoughts
c
The nurse is teaching a patient how to self-administer triptan injections for migraine
headaches. Which statement by the patient indicates that he needs further teaching?
a. "This medication does not reduce the number of migraines I will have."
b. "I will keep a journal to record the headaches I have and how the injections are
working."
c. "I will take this medication regularly to prevent a migraine headache from occurring."
d. "I will take this medication when I feel a migraine headache starting."
c
A nurse is planning to administer morphine IV to a client who is postoperative. Which of
the following actions should the nurse take?
a. Withhold this medication if respiratory rate is less than 10/min
b. Give morphine intermittent via IV bolus over 30 seconds or less.
c. Protect the client's skin from the severe diarrhea that occurs with morphine.
d. Monitor for seizures and confusion with repeated doses
a
, NRS 2020 - Pharmacology
A nurse is teaching a client who has diabetes mellitus and receives 25 units of NPH
insulin every morning if her blood glucose level is above 200 mg/dL. Which of the
following information should the nurse include?
a. Expect the NPH insulin to peak in 6 to 14 hr.
b. Shake the insulin vigorously before loading the syringe.
c. Discard the NPH solution if it appears cloudy.
d. Freeze unopened insulin vials.
a
A patient with cancer is admitted to the hospital. The nurse obtains an admission history
and learns that the patient has been taking oxycodone and a nonsteroidal anti-
inflammatory drug (NSAID) for a year. The patient reports a recent increase in the
intensity of pain, along with a new pain described as "burning" and "shooting." The
nurse anticipates that the prescriber will order:
a. A combination opioid/NSAID and an adjunctive analgesic.
b. Intramuscular morphine sulfate and acetaminophen.
c. An increase in the oxycodone and NSAID doses.
d. A fentanyl transdermal patch, acetaminophen, and an adjunctive analgesic for nerve
pain.
d
Parasympathomimetic drugs cause:
a. Mydriasis
b. Constipation
c. Bradycardia
d. Bronchodilation
c
Which of the following drugs is a non cardio-selective beta receptor antagonist?
a. Propranolol
b. Metoprolol
c. Acebutolol
d. Atenolol
a
OAKLAND UNIVERSITY NRS 2020 PHARMACOLOGY
PRACTICE QUESTIONS 2026/2027 COMPLIED FROM
REAL EXAMS (200 QUESTIONS)
A patient receives a drug that has a narrow therapeutic range. The nurse administering
this medication will expect to do what?
a. Administer this medication intravenously.
b. Administer the drug at intervals longer than the drug half-life.
c. Monitor plasma drug levels.
d. Teach the patient that maximum drug effects will occur within a short period.
c
Patients can exhibit alterations in the rate and extent of drug absorption because of
various factors. All of the following factors might affect the rate and/or extent of drug
absorption EXCEPT:
a. The presence of food in gut
b. The formulation of the drug
c. Intestinal motility
d. A generic form of the drug
e. Gastric emptying time
d
Parenteral (Intravenous) administration:
a. Cannot be used with unconsciousness patients
b. Is too slow for emergency use
c. Usually produces a more rapid response than oral administration
d. Generally results in a less accurate dosage than oral administration
c
,NRS 2020 - Pharmacology
A patient requires a high dose of antihypertensive medication because the medication
has a significant first-pass effect. What does this mean?
a. The medication is extensively metabolized in the patient's liver.
b. The medication must pass through the patient's bloodstream several times to
generate a therapeutic effect.
c. The medication passes through the renal tubules and is excreted in large amounts.
d. The medication is ineffective following the first dose and increasingly effective with
each subsequent dose.
a
Dopamine is administered to a patient who has been experiencing hypotensive episodes.
Other than an increase in blood pressure, which indicator would the nurse use to
evaluate a successful response to the dopamine?
a. Improved gastric motility
b. Decrease in pulse.
c. Increase in urine output
d. Weight gain
c
A nurse is preparing to administer medications. Which patient would the nurse consider
to have the greatest predisposition to an adverse reaction?
a. A 75-year-old woman with cystitis
b. A 30-year-old man with kidney disease
c. A 9-year-old boy with an ear infection
d. A 50-year-old man with an upper respiratory tract infection
b
The nurse is administering morning medications. The nurse gives a patient multiple
medications, two of which compete for plasma albumin receptor sites. As a result of this
concurrent administration, the nurse can anticipate that what might occur? (Select all
that apply.)
a. The increase in bound drug will intensify effects.
b. Plasma levels of free drug will rise.
c. The increase in free drug will intensify effects.
d. Binding of one or both agents will be reduced.
,NRS 2020 - Pharmacology
e. Plasma levels of free drug will fall.
b, c, d
What are the properties of an ideal drug? (Select all that apply)
a. Chemical stability
b. Ease of administration
c. Predictability
d. Irreversible action
a, b, c
A patient is receiving Interferon Beta for treatment of multiple sclerosis. As the nurse you
will stress the importance of?
a. Low fat diet
b. Physical exercise to improve fatigue
c. Hand hygiene to avoid infection
d. Reporting feelings of severe depression of suicidal thoughts
c
The nurse is teaching a patient how to self-administer triptan injections for migraine
headaches. Which statement by the patient indicates that he needs further teaching?
a. "This medication does not reduce the number of migraines I will have."
b. "I will keep a journal to record the headaches I have and how the injections are
working."
c. "I will take this medication regularly to prevent a migraine headache from occurring."
d. "I will take this medication when I feel a migraine headache starting."
c
A nurse is planning to administer morphine IV to a client who is postoperative. Which of
the following actions should the nurse take?
a. Withhold this medication if respiratory rate is less than 10/min
b. Give morphine intermittent via IV bolus over 30 seconds or less.
c. Protect the client's skin from the severe diarrhea that occurs with morphine.
d. Monitor for seizures and confusion with repeated doses
a
, NRS 2020 - Pharmacology
A nurse is teaching a client who has diabetes mellitus and receives 25 units of NPH
insulin every morning if her blood glucose level is above 200 mg/dL. Which of the
following information should the nurse include?
a. Expect the NPH insulin to peak in 6 to 14 hr.
b. Shake the insulin vigorously before loading the syringe.
c. Discard the NPH solution if it appears cloudy.
d. Freeze unopened insulin vials.
a
A patient with cancer is admitted to the hospital. The nurse obtains an admission history
and learns that the patient has been taking oxycodone and a nonsteroidal anti-
inflammatory drug (NSAID) for a year. The patient reports a recent increase in the
intensity of pain, along with a new pain described as "burning" and "shooting." The
nurse anticipates that the prescriber will order:
a. A combination opioid/NSAID and an adjunctive analgesic.
b. Intramuscular morphine sulfate and acetaminophen.
c. An increase in the oxycodone and NSAID doses.
d. A fentanyl transdermal patch, acetaminophen, and an adjunctive analgesic for nerve
pain.
d
Parasympathomimetic drugs cause:
a. Mydriasis
b. Constipation
c. Bradycardia
d. Bronchodilation
c
Which of the following drugs is a non cardio-selective beta receptor antagonist?
a. Propranolol
b. Metoprolol
c. Acebutolol
d. Atenolol
a
